Farm-gate



N.. 0l SE TT AM WM .R Wm W (No Model.)

Patented Peb. 4,1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM W. IVATSON, OF LEVVISVILLE, INDIANA.

FARM-GATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 420,482, dated February 4, 1890.

Application flied June 26, 1889. Serial No. 315,639. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Beit known that I, WILLIAM W. WATSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lewisville, in the county of Henry and State .of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Farin-Gates; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as, will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to that class of devices known as folding-panel gates.

The object of my invention is to prevent such a gate from dropping below a horizontal position.

The nature of the invention consists of constructions and combinations, all as will hereinafter be described in the specification and pointed out in the claim, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 represents a side elevation of the gate in its normal position; Fig. 2, a similar elevation showing the movable parts :raised to another position; and Fig. 3, a transverse section on line 3 3, Fig. l.

A represents the bars hinged to the gatepost B A the bars carrying the latch or securing device by which the gate is held against post B A2, the slats or rails pivoted at each end to bars A and A; A3, the intermediate bars pivoted to the slats and having the notches a3, and A4 the oblique locking-bars, pivoted at or near the center to the middle slat or rail, and having their ends CL4 beveled in opposite directions to engage with notches a and a3. This bar is also provided with guides or stops a5 and a, one a5 at the upper end and normally abutting against the lower edge of the top rail, and the other at the lower end and normally abutting against the upper edge of the lower rail, so that neither end of the locking-bar can pass beyond the end of the bar to which it is adjacent. If the operator should., therefore, neglect to secure the ends of the locking-bar in the notches, the top and bottom rails, owing` to their tendency to sag downward, will act upon these stops and cause the locking-bar to move toward and abut against the notched bars, and thus prevent the latch end of th-e gate from sagging. They alsoprevent the locking-bars assuming other than an oblique position.

I am aware that locking-bars pivoted at the middle and having beveled ends which are inserted in notches of the vertical or end bars of the gate are old, and to such construct-ions make no claim.

My improvement consists in the addition to said bars of stops placed at such points that when the gate is lowered they will guide the ends of the locking bar or bars into the lowermost notch of the bar A3 and the uppermost notch ot bar A.

What I claim as new is- In a gate of the kind described, the combination of the iixed bar or bars hinged to the gate-post, the notched bar or bars at the end opposite to the fixed bar, the intermediate bar having the notches, the slats pivoted to all of said bars, and the locking bar or bars having the beveled ends and the upper and lower guides or stops to contact with the upper side of the lower bar and the under side of the upper bar, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM W. VATSON. 

